Military families were once a cornerstone of Trump’s electorate, but lately he can’t seem to stop scoring points with the once-loyal demographic. First there was the debacle of calling fallen soldiers “losers” during his presidency, and last week he angered them even more by claiming the Medal of Freedom was “way better” than the Medal of Honor. Now the former president is facing accusations of stolen valor after posting photos of himself “serving” on the A-Team in the 1980s, photos that some claim could have been generated by an AI.
Trump is familiar with artificial intelligence. He recently posted fake photos of Taylor Swift and her fans supporting him. These photos could easily be dismissed as ironic, but Trump has gone to great lengths to portray the A-Team as “100 percent authentic.” He posted the first photo with the following caption:
“Until now I have not been able to speak about my service to this country, but thanks to recent clearance I am proud to share. Here I am with my brothers in arms John “Hannibal” Smith, BA Baracuss, ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock and ‘Faceman.’ They are gone but never forgotten. Together we made America the greatest nation in the world. #A-Team #MAGA #Bible”
Trump followed up the tweet with several more photos showing himself and “the boys” in action, with the authenticity of each photo seeming more dubious than the last. One photo of the former president smoking a cigar with John “Hannibal” Smith made particularly bold claims:
“We had some really wild times. It wasn’t easy being listed as a fugitive and having to carry out important secret missions that were too dangerous for the military, but sometimes you have to get your hands dirty to make America great. They say Hannibal’s plans were often almost as good as mine.”
Critics have been quick to point out that The A-Team is a fictionalized television series and that the photos show Trump with television actors, many of whom are still alive and have never served in the U.S. military in any capacity. One photo even shows Trump knocking out BA Baracuss during a boxing match, but it is clearly Mr. T playing Clubber Lang in Rocky 3.
“Baracuss and I had our tussles (which I always won), mostly due to his jealousy because I was the team’s seduction expert. But at the end of the day, we were brothers,” Trump said recently at a rally in Michigan.
After a barrage of tweets calling the photos fake and accusing Trump of stolen bravery, the former president only reiterated his claims.
“Kamabala doesn’t want you to know that my A-Team single-handedly rescued Alf from the clutches of the evil Doctor Hannibal Lecter, thereby saving Christmas and democracy in one fell swoop. I say: BAD LUCK!”
When asked for comment by the Associated Press, Mr. T called the use of AI-generated images to mobilize support desperate and sad, adding: “I don’t hate him, but I feel sorry for the fool.”
